This ST is nearly too hot to handle
(for fast-moving young families!)
Iwish Noah could instantly be 18 (as opposed to nineand-a-half) for a day or two every now and again so he could start testing these ever more naked, ever more raw, powerful and pesky hot hatches Ford keeps churning out. It’s a young man’s job, for heaven’s sake, not that of a slightly creaky, secretly balding 52-year-old with a growing reluctance for unnecessary discomfort and a brace of hip-replacement operations on the horizon.
Visually, for a brand new, stateof-the-art, three-door hot hatch, this Fiesta ST is surprisingly on the tame side. A little too tame we – that is, me, my wife Tash, Tim, my nephew Mark, his fiancée Tania, and my sons Noah and Eli – all thought at first. This could be down to the rather grown-up Performance Blue paint job (an added option), which seems to smooth out the more sporty features.
On closer inspection, things are more exciting than they first appear, with a refreshing lack of fakery for the sake of it.
All frills, grilles, air intakes etc seem to be there for an actual reason this time around. We were most taken with the uncluttered honeycombed front and the classy, funpacked rear end with its twin tail pipes, under-valance diffuser and rooftop spoiler. In profile, the offset double swage, on the lower and upper doors, also comes across as effortlessly elegant and classy for such a small car.
Once you have clambered your way over the cumbersome, clumsy, stubborn (but uber-cool) Recaro front sports seats, it’s all a bit tight, dark and stark back there – not that my kids minded. They loved every second, in fact, whereas I think I’d have been screaming to be let out after about five minutes.
Once you’re belted in, a youthful, energetic vibe immediately takes hold, primarily due to the fact that the whole interior is stylish, sporty and well-equipped. The controls and equipment are clearly marked and well laid out, with the odd exception of the Engine Start-Stop button, which is mysteriously hidden by the steering wheel and indicator stalk. Crucial stuff such as the climate controls are easily adjusted with minimal distraction to the driver, and the centre function screen has every feature you’ll ever need, again clearly marked and easily navigated.
Finally, to the main event and the incredible alchemy with which Ford has created 200hp and 290Nm of torque from a twitchy three-cylinder, 1.5-litre, turbocharged engine. And what about that exhaust note? How do they make something sound so deep, rasping and fruity when it’s coming from a penny whistle as opposed to a tuba?
Of course, none of the above would matter in the slightest if nothing much happened when it came to applying the gas. The good news is that it does. The car feels very quick and capable in any of its three driving modes: Normal, Sport and Track (Track automatically turns off all electronic driving assistance by the way – you have been warned). Wind this latest ST package up in any of the above configurations and it’s like trying to control a creche of three-year-olds who’ve been let loose in a warehouse full of M&Ms. There’s heaps of sophisticated power being channelled through a relatively rudimentary front-wheel-drive system and the gearbox is super-tight and precise with a racy short throw.
For that’s what we have here. If you haven’t yet experienced severe understeer around an unexpectedly tight turn, with reverse camber and a mixed hedge (or, even worse, a dry stone wall), you have still to transit one of life’s most hair-raising rites of passage. Running out of talent is one thing, running out of technology is another, but when the two get together to scare the undercrackers off you, it’s the wake-up call to beat all wake-up calls. The power on tap in comparison to the size of what’s generating it is gobsmacking. Switch it to Track mode and you are jiving with the devil. Times the torque steer by a thousand and stand by to exit roundabouts on full opposite lock with full throttle understeer. In this mode, the ST is barely controllable, but then again anyone driving like this is probably out of control generally. Ease off a little, however, save Track mode exclusively, er, for the track and there’s tons of fun to be had, with the added thrown-in bonus of perhaps even staying alive.
At no point, not for even a millisecond, did I find driving the Fiesta ST a pleasant experience. It was, however, permanently engaging and exciting. Which is exactly what this car is meant to be.
AND WHAT ABOUT THAT EXHAUST NOTE?